Sunday, May 04, 2008

Taddle Creek magazine cover

Taddle Creek is a local literary magazine which was kind enough to run one of my comics years ago as their very first comic feature. Since then, I've drawn a few other comics for them, and have always enjoyed the experience. A couple of months ago the editor, Conan Tobias, approached me with the idea of having me do a cover for them which was very flattering. I always like the freedom Conan gives me to do whatever I want, and this case was no different. So, of course, I had a great time working on this image.

The concept was easy enough, and came to me in an inspired moment, and I knocked out a sketch and colour rough over the course of a couple hours. The final itself also came together nicely, without any real problems. I usually prefer to work on drawings with this kind of vibe really late at night, while listening to music on my headphones. I like it when my whole downtown neighbourhood is quiet and I can just lose track of time while drawing.

For those who are interested, you can check out some steps of my process toward the final below. I actually did a really quick marker drawing before the thumbnail pencil, but it was so dodgy I decided to not even scan it. The colour rough was what made the whole thing work for me. Once I drew that one, I knew the final piece would work out fine.

Don: thanks, buddy. Yeah, I love those vintage pin up mags too -- I used to own a collection and the ones in the picture are kind of an homage to my memories of them (especially the copy on the covers "Cannibals in Tahiti!" and and all that).

Jason: thanks, Jason. I always enjoy the challenge of trying to capture mood and atmosphere. And yes, I totally saw the Iron Man film -- and a couple of other people were telling me to stick around for the end which I did :)

John: thanks, John! The completed cover with masthead looks great. Its always great to hear from you :)

Please note that I do not do accept any private commissions (comic character sketches, family portraits, etc). I also do not sell any prints of my work online. Sketches and prints can usually be purchased at events that I am personally attending. Thanks for your understanding.